Spring 2024 

Select Courses in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies 

Note: The courses listed below are not an exhaustive list of courses being offered on the REEE region. Please see course explorer for additional classes. 

*Check with Advisor or FLAS Coordinator whether the course will fulfill area studies course requirements 

 

Area Studies 

ACES 398/RST 199: Recreation, Sport, and Tourism Economics in Croatia
Renata Endres 
Meets 3/11-5/1, 1:00PM - 5:00 PM, F, 106 David Kinley Hall and Travel 

Experience first-hand why Croatia is a rapidly rising top tourism destination with a beautiful coastline, storied cities, bucolic mountains, castles, delicious cuisine, forests, and more! Learn about the fundamentals of economics in tourism and recreation through site visits and meetings with government officials, businesses, academics studying these topics in Croatia, and local tourism leaders. 

There are two sections of the ACE 398/RST 199 course, a non-travel section and an immersion section that travels to Croatia May 13-26, 2023. While on the study tour, students travel to a variety of destinations including visiting the Split Municipal Department of Tourism, Postojna Cave, presentations by University of Rijeka Faculty, and a tour of Agroturizam Štefanić. 

Students must apply at studyabroad.illinois.edu and be selected to enroll. Email Chaya Sandler (csandle2@illinois.edu) for instructor approval. 

 

ARTH 443: The Russian Avant-Garde 
Kristin Romberg  
9:30AM- 10:50AM, TTH, 316 Art and Design 

What happens to art's forms and institutions in a socialist society? What kind of patron is the working class, the public, or the state? Can art be revolutionary? If so, how so? What does it look like? In this course, we will look at the ways that artists strove to answer these questions in the decades surrounding the Russian Revolution of 1917. Examining formations across a broad range of media—including painting and sculpture, mass festivals and monuments, theater, design, architecture, photography, and cinema—we will attempt to understand how art was redefined in terms of collective forms of authorship, common spaces, and shared things. 

 

BCS 115: South Slavic Cultures
Peter Wright 
12:30PM – 01:50PM, TTR, 165 Noyes Laboratory  

Exploration of South Slavic cultures in the historically rich and complex region sometimes referred to as "the Balkans," focusing particularly on those groups found within the successor states of the former Yugoslavia. Critical look at the traditional view of the region as the crossroads or the bridge between East and West, and at the term Balkanization which has become a pejorative term used to characterize fragmented, and self-defeating social systems. 

 

EURO 502: The EU in a Global Context* 
Amanda Smith
12:00PM – 2:50PM, 1018 Literatures, Cultures, and Linguistics 

Introduces students to the role of the EU in international affairs. 

 

HIST 168: A History of Judaism* 
Dov Weiss 
12:30PM-1:50PM, MW, Online 

Examines the social, political, economic, and intellectual history of the Jews from Abraham to the present-day, with particular attention to Jewish thought and society.  

 

HIST 252: The Holocaust* 
Peter Fritzsche 
1:00PM-2:20PM, MW, 386 Armory  

Exploration of the Holocaust in historical perspective by examining European anti-Semitism, political developments in Germany, the rise to power of the Nazis, and the origins of the Holocaust with first-hand accounts, films, and historical texts, concluding with the legacy of the Holocaust in the contemporary world. 

 

HIST 352: Europe in the World: War and Peace in Central Asia 
Anna Whittington 
11:00AM-12:20PM, TTR, 222 David Kinley Hall 

Section information text: Topic: War and Peace in Central Asia Description: For centuries, Europeans and other western observers have had an enduring fascination with Central Asia. From romantic invocations of the Silk Road and isolated nomads to medieval barbarisms of the Taliban, Western media and popular culture often portray Central Asia as a region out of step with time. Central Asia, however, has long been a center for culture, innovation, and political power. This course traces the transformation of Central Asia from Genghis Khan’s thirteenth century conquests to the present, covering the territories of former Soviet Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan), Western China (Xinjiang), and Afghanistan. Although the course covers nearly a thousand years of history, the primary emphasis is on imperial schemes and transformations over the past 300 years, particularly the comparative imperialism and colonialism of Russia, the Soviet Union, Britain, and China. In this course, we move beyond predominantly external views to understand Central Asia on its own terms, and, as often as possible, through the eyes of Central Asians themselves.  

 

HIST 354: Twentieth Century Europe 
Stefan Djordjevic and Marco Jaimes 
Meets 3/11-5/1, 6:00PM-7:50PM, W, 1068 Lincoln Hall, Travel 

This is a study abroad course in Prague, Czechia. Students will tour one of Europe’s most beautiful cities and visit locations where history was made: Wenceslas Square, the Jewish Quarter, Prague Castle, the Theresienstadt Ghetto, and the National Opera. Immersion in these spaces will impress upon them the central themes of the course: The cultural dynamism of the Czech lands, the legacy of ethnic and confessional pluralism, and the transformation of European identity in the course of the long 20th century. To apply for this course and for additional information, please visit the LAS Study Abroad Website. 

 

HIST 502: Problems in Comparative History* 
John Randolph 
1:00PM - 2:50PM, F, 1020 Lincoln Hall  

Digital Documentary Editing: This seminar will focus on the history, theory, and practice of documentary editing in the digital age. In the first part of the course, we will examine the history and theory of this craft, and also the practical techniques and tools used to publish materials for historical interpretation today. In the second half of the class, students will develop a prototype edition of their own, publishing source documents that will serve their own research, teaching, and public history interests. This class grows out of the work of the SourceLab initiative at Illinois, which also provides a peer-reviewed venue for publishing student work. 

 

IS 461: Russian, East European, and Eurasian Bibliography & Research Methods 
Kit Condill 
1:00PM - 3:50PM, F, 131 Grad Sch of Lib & Info Science 

This course is intended to provide all necessary tools for the conduct of effective research in the field of Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies for both scholars and librarians. Relying on the rich bibliographic tradition of Russia, Central Asia, the Caucasus and Eastern Europe, the latest techniques, strategies, databases and full-text options will be explored and explained. Topics include national bibliography, archival materials, émigré publications, rare books, open-Web resources, citation management tools, and web archiving, with particular emphasis on the transliteration systems, abbreviations, bibliographic and cataloging conventions, and constant troubleshooting that are essential to efficient REEES research. Attention is also paid to information architecture in general and the ways that historical, political, intellectual and technological phenomena affect access to published and unpublished research materials. 

 

LAW 657: International Human Rights Law* 
Francis Boyle 
03:00PM - 04:30PM, MT, Online 

Based primarily on a series of contemporary “real world” problems, the course introduces the student to the established and developing legal rules and procedures governing the protection of international human rights. Its thesis is that there exists a substantial body of substantive and procedural International Human Rights Law, and that lawyers, government officials, and concerned citizens should be familiar with the policies underlying this law and its enforcement, as well as with the potential it offers for improving the basic lot of human beings everywhere. Additionally, the course presupposes that the meaning of “human rights” is undergoing fundamental expansion, and therefore explores Marxist and Third World conceptions of human rights as well as those derived from the liberal West. 

Sequence and Prerequisites: None 

Evaluation: Paper 

Categories: International and Comparative / Upper-Level 

 

MUS 418A: Regional Studies in Musicology 
Donna Buchanan 
3:00PM-4:20PM, MW, TBD 

Topic: "MUSIC AND REVOLUTION IN EASTERN EUROPE: UKRAINE, RUSSIA, AND BELARUS." This interdisciplinary course explores the implication of music in politics, nation-building, regime change, conflict, and resistance in twentieth- and twenty-first-century Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus, with particular attention to the Maidan revolutions and current war in Ukraine. Course topics will survey the history, regional distribution, popularization, and contemporary social significance of vernacular musics and arts in diverse media and venues—from the fields to the festival stage to flashmobs to Facebook. Course materials will draw upon recordings, music videos, literary works, and films in addition to anthropological, area, and ethnomusicological studies. Whenever possible, students will engage first hand with representative instruments, vocal practices, and regional specialists. While the ability to hear, identify, and understand the significance of regional genres and their distinguishing features is a primary course objective, students from both within and outside the School of Music are encouraged to enroll; instructor expectations will be modified accordingly. Students from outside Music who wish to register for MUS 418 should contact the instructor for permission. 

 

MUSC 449: Balkanalia 
Donna Buchanan 
6:00PM - 8:50PM, T, 0061A Music Building 

Instruction and experience in the performance of various non-Western and vernacular music traditions such as African mbira, Andean panpipes, North American string band, Gamelan Kebyar, European and South American traditional music, etc. Topics vary according to available instructors. Course Information: 1 undergraduate hour. 1 graduate hour. May be repeated to a maximum of 3 hours in the same term if topics vary for a total of 16 undergraduate hours, 12 graduate hours in separate terms. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor. 

 

POL 115/REES 115: Intro to Polish Culture 
George Gasyna 
12:30PM – 1:50PM, TTR, 1065 Lincoln Hall 

Introduction to Polish culture and literature from a broad historical perspective. Drawing on novels and plays, film, the visual arts, and works of historical research, the course provides students with the basic concepts, methodologies and theories of literary and cultural interpretation, with an emphasis on modern Polish culture (1800-2010) within a broader European context. Course Information: Same as REES 115. 

 

REES 200: Intro to Russia and Eurasia  
12:30PM - 1:50PM, TTR, 214 Davenport Hall 

Eurasia, geographically between the “East” and the “West,” encompasses 11 time zones and over 100 different ethnic groups. Its multicultural complexity and political diversity over recent centuries have made it a rich source for the study of political, economic, and social change. This interdisciplinary course introduces students to key issues and themes that cross disciplines and are important for understanding the contemporary socio-politics of the region. As a class we will draw out these themes by examining major texts, novels, poems, film, and music that were not only impactful within their own genre, but whose influence has rippled throughout disciplines to become interdisciplinary. Major themes to be investigated include: regional interactions/geopolitics, socioeconomics, political action, subjectivity and alterity, identity, gender, and ethnicity & race. 

 

REES 496: The South Caucasus  
Maureen Marshall 
3:00PM - 5:00PM, W, LH 1020 

Topic: Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, the countries of the South Caucasus, are perhaps best known historically as a geographical (and geological) fault zone “between East and West” that is set against stunning mountain backdrops, imposing stone architecture, and traditions of hospitality. Today, the region is attracting refugees, adventure tourists, and international energy corporations, even as each country continues to deal with periods of stagnation, conflict, and rapid change following the collapse of the U.S.S.R. This course will take an anthropological perspective on the South Caucasus, drawing on archaeological and ethnographic studies as well as interdisciplinary texts (geography, history, political science, sociology) and media (dance, film, artwork, song) to explore the foundational myths, historical landscapes, and cultures of the South Caucasus from the Paleolithic to the Roman period and the Medieval to the Post-Soviet present. Importantly, we will read and discuss authors and artists from the region and diaspora to critically engage with Western and Russian conceptions of the South Caucasus. Together as a class we will explore the intersection of history, politics, religion, and the arts with identity, ethnicity, and subjectivity. 

 

RUSS 122: Russia and Black America  
Richard Tempest  
3:00PM - 4:50PM, MW, TBD 

A survey of the interactions and intersections between key African American figures and cultural practices, and Russian imperial, Soviet, and post-Soviet culture, in a historical, social, and political context, with emphasis on Russian-sourced cultural transfers that influenced and sometimes shaped the Black American experience and which functioned as the currency and medium of the African American–Russian connection. Course Information: Same as AFRO 122 and CWL 122 

 

RUSS 320/CWL 321: Russian Writers-Gogol 
David Cooper 
2:30PM – 3:50PM, MW, Room G36 Literatures, Cultures, and Linguistics Building  

Focused study of the work of a single Russian writer, or the comparison of that writer with another major author, in translation. No Russian required. Course Information: Same as CWL 321. May be repeated in separate terms to a maximum of 6 hours, if topics vary. Prerequisite: At least one other college literature course or consent of instructor. 3 hours. No Russian required. Meets with RUSS 524, Section: G4, CRN: 64947. 

 

RUSS 461: Russia and the Other 
Valeria Sobol 
02:00PM – 03:20PM, TTR, TBD 

Interdisciplinary and comparative topics including, but not limited to: Russia and the West, Russia and the East, the Cold War, and post-Soviet cultural studies. Course Information: Same as CWL 466. 3 undergraduate hours. 4 graduate hours. May be repeated to a maximum of 6 undergraduate hours or 8 graduate hours. Prerequisite: Russian course at the 200 or 300 level or consent of instructor. 
Section information text: 
Topic: The Caucasus in the Russian Cultural Imagination. From the nineteenth-century Romantic fascination with this beautiful, dangerous, and exotic region to current racial profiling and fears of terrorism, the Caucasus has kept its hold on the Russian cultural imagination as Russia’s ultimate “Other.” The course will explore the representations of the Caucasus in Russian literature and film and their historical and theoretical contexts. No knowledge of Russian is required. Meets with CWL 471. 

 

RUSS 521: Gogol 
David Cooper 
2:30PM - 3:50PM, MW, 1134 Literatures, Cultures, & Linguistics Building 

Study of Nikolai Gogol's works in the original Russian, historical contexts, and current critical approaches.  

 

SCAN 225/ HIST 254: Vikings to Volvos: Scandinavian History* 
Bjorn Malekin
2:00PM – 3:20PM, TTR, 169, Davenport Hall 

An introduction to the history, literature, and culture of Scandinavia and the Nordic region, from the Viking age until the modern era (700s-present). Includes discussion of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Svalbard, and Greenland. All readings in English. 

 

TRST 502/CWL 512/EALC 512/GER 512/SLAV 502: Applied Literary Translation* 
Robert Jenkins 
3:30PM - 5:50PM, M, G96 Literatures, Cultures, and Linguistics, or Online 

Focuses on the practice and strategies of literary translation through the study of what prominent and successful translators have written about their own experience and through comparative analysis of prize-winning translations. Students will be exposed to reader response theory and the role of the translator as cultural agent while learning how to produce paratext for their translations (prefaces, notes, etc.) and developing skills in translation, editing, grant-writing, and participation in professional associations 

 

TURK 270/ANTH 272/GLBL 272/SAME 272: Languages and Culture in Turkey 
Ayse Ozcan 
11:00AM – 12:20PM, TTR, 1110 Literatures, Cultures, and Linguistics 

As a country located at the crossroads of Asia, Europe and Africa, Turkey has always been under the spotlight. In this course, we will study the dynamic relationship between language and culture in Ottoman and modern Turkey through a timely analysis of its transition from a long-lasting empire to a young "secular" nation-state. We will examine the complexities of Turkish modernity from a holistic perspective to better comprehend how central Asian and Middle Eastern cultural influences, continuities, and transformations gave birth to modern Turkish language. The course should help you not only in developing an understanding of the Turkish language within a cultural framework, but also in gaining insight into Turkey's history, politics, literature, and media. No former knowledge of Turkey or the Turkish language is required.  

 

Languages 

For other languages and courses available through the BTAA contact memarsh@illinois.edu 

Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian 

BCS 102: First Year Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian II 

MTWR 09:00AM - 09:50AM, 156 English Building 

 

BCS 202: Second Year Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian II 

MTWR 10:00AM - 11:50AM, (TBD) 

 

Czech 

CZCH 102: Elementary Czech II 

TTR: 09:30AM - 10:30PM, Online 

 

Polish 

POL 102: Elementary Polish II 

MWTR 10:00-10:50, 1062 Lincoln Hall 

 

POL 202: Second Yr Polish II 

MTWTR 11:00-11:50, 1026 Lincoln Hal 

 

Russian 

RUSS 102: First-Year Russian II 

MTWR 10:00-10:50, 1068 Lincoln Hall 

MTWR 11:00-11:50, 1020 Lincoln Hall 

 

RUSS 202: Second-Year Russian II 

MTWR 11:00-11:50, G36 Literatures, Cultures, and Linguistics 

 

RUSS 302: Third Year Russian II 

MWF 11:00-11:50, 207 Gregory Hall 

 

RUSS 402: Fourth Year Russian II 

MWF 12:00-12:50, G30 Literatures, Cultures, and Linguistics 

 

RUSS 502: Russian for Grad Students I 

TTR 01:00-2:20, (TBD) 

 

Turkish 

TURK 202: Elementary Turkish II 

MTWRF 09:00-09:50, 1110 Literatures, Cultures, and Linguistics  

 

TURK 406: Advanced Turkish II 

MW 10:00 AM - 11:20 PM, 215 Davenport Hall 

 

Ukrainian 

UKRA 102: Basic Ukrainian II 

MTWR 12:00-12:50, 215 Davenport Hall 

 

UKRA 202: Second-Year Ukrainian II 

MTWR 11:00-11:50, 309 English Building